Evaluating the Early Enrollees: Richard LeCounte III

Georgia has added six early enrollees to the class of 2017. I will breakdown my thoughts on each early enrollee and how I project them to contribute to Georgia. This week Richard LeCounte, Next week Deangelo Gibbs.

The Facts:

Richard LeCounte III is a top rated prospect for the class of 2017 and is already on Georgia’s campus. LeCounte has been a 4 time selection on the Georgia defensive All-State team. He also was selected as a All-State basketball player this year, while leading Liberty County to its first ever basketball state championship. He has starred for Liberty County on offense, defense, and special teams.

The Upside:

LeCounte has tremendous athletic ability, dunking at only 5’10. He does an excellent job of reading the quarterback from the safety position. He isn’t afraid to come down and press a wide receiver at the line. That was very apparent during the Army All-American game, he pressed Devonta Smith (a top wide receiver in the country.) and drove him through the sideline and dumped him over the bench.

LeCounte has returned a number of punts and kicks to the house. Also he has caught many passes for touchdowns, He has some serious speed. He has made some outstanding interceptions, and has been a leader for his team throughout his career so far.

LeCounte is a very vocal guy, you can hear him talking on the field all the time. LeCounte always backs up everything that he says. He will fly down and attack the line of scrimmage on run plays. He does a good job of not getting caught up in the blocking schemes, and always gets to the ball carrier. LeCounte always punishes the ball carrier rarely missing a tackle.

The Concern:

The only concerns at all with LeCounte is his size. Coming in at 5’10 and 180lbs, he is pretty undersized. Will he be able to strike opponents at the SEC level, as he had in high school. Fortunately that will surely change when he gets into the workout program Georgia has with Coach Sinclair.  The best thing is, Dominick Sanders, and Aaron Davis both returned. LeCounte will get a chance to study behind these two outstanding Safeties and given time to add size.

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Expectations at Georgia:

LeCounte is a huge pick up for Georgia. I think he will come really close to replicating Bacarri Rambo‘s career, and may even have a chance to surpass it. He is a ball hawk at the safety position who will come down and strike people at the line of scrimmage. I project him to be a two-three year starter for the Dawgs, depending on if he elects to leave early for the draft. I expect him to be a top 5 safety prospect for the NFL Draft when he declares.